Skip to main content
PMC home page
The Journal of Cell Biology logoLink to The Journal of Cell Biology
. 1980 Jan 1;84(1):131–140. doi: 10.1083/jcb.84.1.131

Dynamics of nuclear actin bundle induction by dimethyl sulfoxide and factors affecting its development

PMCID: PMC2110527  PMID: 7188610

Abstract

We have reported in a previous paper that dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) induces the formation of huge bundles of actin filaments in the nuclei of Dictyostelium mucoroides. The present study was performed to provide electron microscope data on the induction of nuclear actin bundles, illustrating both their formation and their reversion, as well as on the effects of various factors on the induction. The large nuclear bundles of actin appeared after 20--30 min of treatment with 10% DMSO. A DMSO concentration of 5 or 10% was optimal for the induction of the bundles. The nuclear actin bundle reverted to the original morphology within 5 min after removing DMSO. Induction of nuclear actin bundles was inhibited by Mg++ and low temperatures, but not by Na+, K+, Ca++, ATP, 3'5'-cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), phosphate buffer, or cytochalasin B. Neither NaN3 nor cycloheximide totally inhibited the induction of the bundles.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (1.0 MB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Behnke O., Forer A., Emmersen J. Actin in sperm tails and meiotic spindles. Nature. 1971 Dec 17;234(5329):408–410. doi: 10.1038/234408a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Cande W. Z., Lazarides E., McIntosh J. R. A comparison of the distribution of actin and tubulin in the mammalian mitotic spindle as seen by indirect immunofluorescence. J Cell Biol. 1977 Mar;72(3):552–567. doi: 10.1083/jcb.72.3.552. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Clarke M., Spudich J. A. Nonmuscle contractile proteins: the role of actin and myosin in cell motility and shape determination. Annu Rev Biochem. 1977;46:797–822. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bi.46.070177.004053. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Condeelis J. S., Taylor D. L. The contractile basis of amoeboid movement. V. The control of gelation, solation, and contraction in extracts from Dictyostelium discoideum. J Cell Biol. 1977 Sep;74(3):901–927. doi: 10.1083/jcb.74.3.901. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Douvas A. S., Harrington C. A., Bonner J. Major nonhistone proteins of rat liver chromatin: preliminary identification of myosin, actin, tubulin, and tropomyosin. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1975 Oct;72(10):3902–3906. doi: 10.1073/pnas.72.10.3902. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Eckert B. S., Lazarides E. Localization of actin in Dictyostelium amebas by immunofluorescence. J Cell Biol. 1978 Jun;77(3):714–721. doi: 10.1083/jcb.77.3.714. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Eckert B. S., Warren R. H., Rubin R. W. Structural and biochemical aspects of cell motility in amebas of Dictyostelium discoideum. J Cell Biol. 1977 Feb;72(2):339–350. doi: 10.1083/jcb.72.2.339. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Ellzey J., Huizar E., Yanez D. Microfilament bundles in antheridial nuclei of Achlya ambisexualis E 87. Arch Microbiol. 1976 Feb;107(1):113–114. doi: 10.1007/BF00427876. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Fukui Y. Intranuclear actin bundles induced by dimethyl sulfoxide in interphase nucleus of Dictyostelium. J Cell Biol. 1978 Jan;76(1):146–157. doi: 10.1083/jcb.76.1.146. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Fukui Y., Katsumaru H. Nuclear actin bundles in Amoeba, Dictyostelium and human HeLa cells induced by dimethyl sulfoxide. Exp Cell Res. 1979 May;120(2):451–455. doi: 10.1016/0014-4827(79)90412-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Herman I. M., Pollard T. D. Actin localization in fixed dividing cells stained with fluorescent heavy meromyosin. Exp Cell Res. 1978 Jun;114(1):15–25. doi: 10.1016/0014-4827(78)90030-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Hinkley R., Telser A. Heavy meromyosin-binding filaments in the mitotic apparatus of mammaliam cells. Exp Cell Res. 1974 May;86(1):161–164. doi: 10.1016/0014-4827(74)90662-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Ishikawa H., Bischoff R., Holtzer H. Formation of arrowhead complexes with heavy meromyosin in a variety of cell types. J Cell Biol. 1969 Nov;43(2):312–328. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Lestourgeon W. M., Forer A., Yang Y. Z., Bertram J. S., Pusch H. P. Contractile proteins. Major components of nuclear and chromosome non-histone proteins. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1975 Feb 27;379(2):529–552. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. McKeown M., Taylor W. C., Kindle K. L., Firtel R. A., Bender W., Davidson N. Multiple, heterogeneous actin genes in Dictyostelium. Cell. 1978 Nov;15(3):789–800. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(78)90264-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Newell P. C., Telser A., Sussman M. Alternative developmental pathways determined by environmental conditions in the cellular slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum. J Bacteriol. 1969 Nov;100(2):763–768. doi: 10.1128/jb.100.2.763-768.1969. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Oakley B. R., Heath I. B. The arrangement of microtubules in serially sectioned spindles of the alga Cryptomonas. J Cell Sci. 1978 Jun;31:53–70. doi: 10.1242/jcs.31.1.53. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Pederson T. Isolation and characterization of chromatin from the cellular slime mold, Dictyostelium discoideum. Biochemistry. 1977 Jun 14;16(12):2771–2777. doi: 10.1021/bi00631a029. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Pollard T. D., Weihing R. R. Actin and myosin and cell movement. CRC Crit Rev Biochem. 1974 Jan;2(1):1–65. doi: 10.3109/10409237409105443. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Puck T. T. Cyclic AMP, the microtubule-microfilament system, and cancer. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1977 Oct;74(10):4491–4495. doi: 10.1073/pnas.74.10.4491. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Rubin R. W., Goldstein L., Ko C. Differences between nucleus and cytoplasm in the degree of actin polymerization. J Cell Biol. 1978 Jun;77(3):698–701. doi: 10.1083/jcb.77.3.698. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Ryser U. Die Ultrastruktur der Mitosekerne in den Plasmodien von Physarum polycephalum. Z Zellforsch Mikrosk Anat. 1970;110(1):108–130. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Sanger J. W. Presence of actin during chromosomal movement. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1975 Jun;72(6):2451–2455. doi: 10.1073/pnas.72.6.2451. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Spudich J. A. Biochemical and structural studies of actomyosin-like proteins from non-muscle cells. II. Purification, properties, and membrane association of actin from amoebae of Dictyostelium discoideum. J Biol Chem. 1974 Sep 25;249(18):6013–6020. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Spudich J. A., Cooke R. Supramolecular forms of actin from amoebae of Dictyostelium discoideum. J Biol Chem. 1975 Sep 25;250(18):7485–7491. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Tilney L. G. The polymerization of actin. II. How nonfilamentous actin becomes nonrandomly distributed in sperm: evidence for the association of this actin with membranes. J Cell Biol. 1976 Apr;69(1):51–72. doi: 10.1083/jcb.69.1.51. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Tilney L. G. The polymerization of actin. III. Aggregates of nonfilamentous actin and its associated proteins: a storage form of actin. J Cell Biol. 1976 Apr;69(1):73–89. doi: 10.1083/jcb.69.1.73. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of Cell Biology are provided here courtesy of The Rockefeller University Press

RESOURCES